Dennis Trillo bares the true nature of his ‘Pulang Araw’ villain character
MANILA, Philippines — Given his physical features and his ability to disappear into a role, Dennis Trillo can play an illustrado, the enlightened one, with Chinese-Mestizo ancestry and a stern soldier of Japanese descent.
Proof of the former role is his primetime historical portal fantasy series “Maria Clara at Ibarra,” while the latter is what he does in the now airing GMA primetime series, “Pulang Araw,” whose narrative is set against the Japanese occupation in the Philippines.
It’s refreshing to see Dennis as Col. Yuta Saitoh — as compared to the usual protagonist characters he would get to essay — and take on his first-ever major villain role.
He is definitely getting into the nitty-gritty of the life and times of an imperial army officer, based on the characterization created by the show’s writers.
“Medyo hindi mahaba yung aming research period (our research period was relatively short),” said the versatile Dennis about the preparation for his role in a recent press conference, “especially me, my character was among those who came later in the program.”
Reading up on Japanese occupation and World War II available on the Net and watching films such as “Pearl Harbor” and “Letters from Iwo Jima” did help him approach his role.
“Of course, reading the script (matters). I need to read it over and over again,” added Dennis, also sharing that going to the set of “Pulang Araw” can be likened to taking a test or written exam, which he always prepares for.
“At first, maiinis sila sa character… at wala pa akong nakikitang mabuting ginawa niya (the audience will get annoyed with the character and I haven’t seen him doing any good),” said the artist. “All the goodness that he’s showing is just a facade of his persona, but deep inside, he has deep, dark secrets, at mga malalagim na plano na gusto niyang mangyari (and horrible plans he intends to do).”
Perhaps, any creative will go the extra mile to present a more nuanced portrayal of a villain than a caricature one.
“Katulad nga nung pinag-usapan namin ni direk Dom na wala namang kontrabida na bigla na lang naging kontrabida (like what director Dominic Zapata and I discussed that no villains suddenly become villains),” shared Dennis. “All their actions are becoming their reactions, maybe (because of) what they’ve been through when they were young.”
In the case of Dennis’ Japanese soldier character, who grew up in the country, Yuta’s anger towards Filipinos emanates from the burglary his family experienced from financially challenged natives in “Pulang Araw,” said the actor. It led to the demise of some family members.
“Lahat yan ay may pinagmumulan talaga (everything comes from something),” continued he. “Mababait naman by nature ang lahat ng tao (human beings are good-natured). (They become this or that) because of life experiences.”
His interviews with GMA News Online and “24 Oras” revealed that Dennis had Japanese dialogues, so he needed to study the Japanese language as well as the accent to give a sense of authenticity to the character. It’s a familiar road to Dennis, given his work in “Maria Clara at Ibarra,” in which he had to properly enunciate Spanish words and statements that his Crisostomo Ibarra uttered in the scenes.
Since the invasion of a foreign presence and its eventual rule over the land loom in “Pulang Araw,” Dennis as the Japanese soldier is also expected to do some action scenes.
“So far, I haven’t done any (physically) challenging (sequences). Halos lahat naman ako pa rin ang gumagawa,” said he. “We will shoot a scene, with war (as the political and social background). So, doon pa lang siguro talagang magiging ma-action ang magiging eksena ko (that’s when my scenes will turn action-packed).”
Asked if there’s any good trait Dennis can think that his character possesses, he said, “Yung determination niya na makamit o makuha yung isang bagay (it’s his determination to achieve something to which he aspires). Maybe that’s the only (characteristic) I’ve seen in him (based on) the scenes I’ve done so far.”
Being part of the show, on the other hand, allows him to learn more about the challenges and sacrifices of Filipinos who lived in that particular period of Philippine history.
His thoughts and takeaways from it include the importance of becoming peace-loving and valuing people around us to avoid unfortunate events such as conflicts and wars.
The younger generation should watch “Pulang Araw” to appreciate the greatness and valor of Filipinos, said Dennis. It also serves as a source of pride in being a Pinoy and an inspiration to love one’s nation.
(Watch ‘Pulang Araw’ weeknights at 8 on GMA Prime and on Netflix. Alden Richards, Barbie Forteza, David Licauco and Sanya Lopez also topbill the primetime show.)
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